Naked Mole Rats are able to live in Acidic Enviroment!

Naked mole rats are making a steady progress on being able to live in an acidic environment where other mammal’s even humans would not be able to do! In African naked mole-rats burrows the carbon dioxide levels build up where the air become too toxic for other mammals but for the naked mole rats they go on with their daily business, the air does not do any harm to them. As scientist Thomas Park said, ‘Much of the lingering pain of an injury for example is caused by acidification of the injured tissues.’ He also said that Acidification is an unavoidable side effect of injury. So these animals feel no pain from air of the environment they are living in. He said there should be new ways in which humans could be able to have that effect. In the nose of the naked mole rat it has nerve fibers that are then activated by the fumes, triggering the nucleus, of the nerves in the brain stem. The scientists then tried a few different tests putting the naked mole rats into different cages of different acid fumes, the animals could do what they wanted and the scientists kept track of what they were doing. They also compared their behavior with mice, rats, and other rodents related to them. Park said, ‘the naked mole rats spent as much time exposing themselves to acidic fumes as they spent in no fume areas’ but other species avoided the fumes. 

So this news was really cool and interesting because I guess I never really hear information about rodents and smaller creatures.  But when they talk about them being able to live in an environment with toxic fumes where humans and other mammals cannot, is very interesting. 

Bibliography

"Naked Mole-Rats May Hold Clues to Pain Relief." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 21 Sept. 2012. Web. 23 Sept. 2012. <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120921180752.htm>.

Otters protecting the Kelp Forest

Researchers in Santa Cruz have discovered the big population of sea otters eating sea urchins which then you see the sea urchins eat the kelp and with the sea urchins being eaten there is more kelp to grow which absorbs 12 times the amount CO2 (carbon dioxide). As scientist Wilmers said, ‘The animals can have a big influence on the carbon cycle.’ The sea otters have a big affect when they are out and around the sea urchins are hiding and eating little bits of kelp scrap but when the otters are not there they graze a lot on the living kelp. Carbon dioxide has increased 40 % ever since the industrial revolution, which causes global warming. Scientist Wilmers and Estes say ‘that spreading the otter population will not do anything but just managing the populations can affect ecosystems.’ Because you see many animals in the world all work differently so they all impact the carbon cycle.  If ecologists can get a better handle on it then it could be good for both ways, animals can be protected, can both eat and carbon could still be absorbed. And that could be hard because there is no easy solution. So the otters are protecting their kelp forest.

 In my opinion this is cool because I never would have thought that only humans would have effected the carbon cycle with their fuels and gases creating global warming, where as animals like sea otters can help take out some of the carbon dioxide. 

Bibliography

"How Sea Otters Can Reduce CO2 in the Atmosphere: Appetite for Sea Urchins Allows Kelp to Thrive." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 07 Sept. 2012. Web. 09 Sept. 2012. <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/09/120907161437.htm>.

Super Fuel Cell Material

Scientist have found a way to use fuel cells to change it into a source of electricity for technology. It can power electronic devices, vehicles, and even military aircraft equipment! The fuel cells convert the energy from hydrogen fuel into electricity by reacting with oxygen. It can produce electricity continuously as long as it has a fuel supply. They would use platinum as the catalyst to speed up the chemical reaction but because it costs so much instead they use other fuel cells. A team of researchers have discovered that if you replace the center of the catalyst with gold and copper and having the outer layer in platinum, it is 5 times higher activity and better stability than the platinum catalyst. So the company is coming up with new alternative that uses less platinum.  ‘They have designed the core of nanocrysytalline material to be a gold- copper mixture and slightly smaller lattice spacing than the platinum coating on the nanocrystals surface’, said professor Ying. This then makes it compressive on the surface of the platinum atoms. This then makes the atoms more active, then reducing the oxygen for the fuel cell. But replacing the core with the nanoparticle the cuts down on the platinum, which is very expensive. So because of this we can make advance fuel cell development, and make it better for technology.  

I think it is really cool how they can use fuel cells to change into a source for technology. And making it just by reacting Hydrogen with oxygen. So this is my current event hope you enjoyed it!

Bibliography

"Superior Fuel Cell Material Developed." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 23 Aug. 2012. Web. 02 Sept. 2012. <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/08/120824103022.htm>.

The Best element in the Periodic table........ Hydrogen!!!!

 Hydrogen is the simplest kind of atom. A few days after the big bang, hydrogen was the only kind of atom in the new universe! It has a nucleus made up of just one proton and around the nucleus is one electron which goes round and round. First hydrogen atoms in space grouped together in clumps which was called nebulae. When it is dense enough it becomes a star.

Inside the star there is lots of heat and gravity, causing all the atoms to press together. When 4 hydrogen atoms are pressed together they then form a new atom called the Helium atom. The helium atom has 2 protons, 2 newtrons, and 2 electrons. Newtrons have a little less energy than protons and with extra energy it gets shot of into space and became light and heat for us. Inside most stars in the universe, billions of hydrogen atoms are turning into helium atoms almost everyday. When stars run out of hydrogen it then becomes a red star. Not all hydrogen stays inside stars, some began spinning around the outside of the star, and then orbiting the new star. It then eventually was mixed with other atoms, and gravity gradually pulled them all together into planets. There are many hydrogen atoms on earth, but most are combined with other atoms to make molecules. They are simple so they are light, lighter than oxygen, so for example if I fill a balloon with hydrogen it will fly up to the sky.

So one question that you might wonder is, what do we use hydrogen for? The two of the things that we use hydrogen for is elevation and fuel.

 As I said before hydrogen is lighter than oxygen so it rises. It use to be used to lift blimps off the ground, but after the hindenburg which burned and crashed, hydrogen was replaced with helium which has a lower chance of being flamable. Today we use hydrogen to elevate weather balloons that go higher than blimps, and they are so small so it is less of a risk of them exploding.
                                                             
                                                                             


 Then we have fuel. Hydrogen is very flamable when it is mixed with pure oxygen. Even though it is dangerous it is very usueful. Rockets and space ships mix pure hydrogen and oxygen to make combustion reaction. Also we use hydrogen for petroleum products, oil and gasoline. In the future maybe hydrogen will replace gasoline for cars. It is also being researched for alternative fuel for cars because when hydrogen burns it does not relase gases into the air, only water. So it could be harrnessed into auto fuel which would then help the green house gases.

 

 And lastly the most important about hydrogen fur us are when two hydrogen atoms combine with one oxygen atom makes one molecule of water. And when hydrogen atoms combine with carbon atoms to make hydrocarbons which are what all living things are made of!   


Bibliography

http://historyforkids.org/scienceforkids/chemistry/atoms/hydrogen.htm

Kennan, Mark. "How Do We Use Hydrogen?" EHow. Demand Media, 08 July 2009. Web. 21 Aug. 2012. <http://www.ehow.com/how-does_5164245_do-use-hydrogen.html>.

  

What are the Warning Systems for Tsunamis? 

A tsunami is one of the world’s most dangerous natural disasters. They destroy, kill, and damage homes and humans lives. We cannot stop or prevent a tsunami from happening, so the big question is, how can we protect ourselves? And what are some of the warning systems? And in what way do they protect us?

I guess the first thing that we should know is what is a tsunami?  A Tsunami is a series of waves traveling across an ocean, and has giant waves that are caused by volcanoes and earthquakes, under the sea.  There are three stages of a tsunami, Generation, Propagation, and Inundation. Generation of the tsunami is when it starts. It is the disturbance, so that would then be a earthquake, volcano, and the tectonic plates. The second stage is the propagation that is when the water starts to move across the deep ocean, and spreads out into all different directions. So it can travel as fast as 950 kilometers per hour through deep water. Also there wavelengths are very long in the ocean. And the last step is inundation that is when near land the water starts to get higher, and flows onto the foreshore. A tsunami is different depending on the coastline and the sea of the sea floor. If a tsunami is moving into shallow water then the amplitude will increase, that is called shoaling. But it does not happen everywhere. But it is more likely for it to occur in a lagoon, bay, harbor etc. So as the tsunami starts to approach the land, the wave grows high but then the speed is slower.  The movement of the water does not matter as much but the energy moving through the water is what makes it dangerous. So when we think about it how exactly is a tsunami different from wind swell waves, which are the typical waves we have daily on the shore? The first thing is that the wavelength of a wind swell is much shorter than a tsunami, and they can normally cause depths of water of 150 meters. Tsunamis have wavelengths that can go up to hundreds of kilometers apart, even when they reach shallow water. The third and second wave can be from ten minutes to two hours apart from each other! The movement of the water goes all the way to the seafloor. This is how a tsunami works.

Second, what type of damage do tsunamis even cause? The tsunamis trough which is the lowest part of the waves crest usually reaches the shore first. But when it does, it is like a huge vacuum cleaner! It sucks in all the water, then letting us see all the harbor, and sea floors. And on the shore they do not appear as breaking waves, instead it is a powerful wave that covers the land. Tsunamis are one of the most terrible natural disasters in the world. They destroy land, all the houses, shops, cities and villages are destroyed and many people are killed. They can even take the sand away from beaches, which takes years to build up. Tsunamis have happened since the begging of time! On October 28^th, Nankaido, Japan 1707, an earthquake hit and was estimated to have been at least the magnitude of 8.3. Then of course after a tsunami came along the coasts of Kii, Milkawa, Surugu, Izu, and Sagami. The waves were powerful enough to even make a split, which then later separated Lake Hamana from the sea. There homes and villages flooded, and a total of 31,000 people killed. Now two tsunamis that you many of heard of was, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and the most recent one in Japan 2011. On December 26^th 2004, there was a big earthquake with the magnitude between 9.1. It was off the coast of Sumatra, and estimated at the depth of 30km. And the flat zone was around 1300 km long, which caused the tsunami. The tsunami hit other countries, Thailand, Malaysia, and India. And it killed over 300,000 people. On the coasts of South Asia, and South East Asia, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand suffering the most damage. Many of the towns and villages were completely destroyed or badly damaged. Many of those affected places are still trying to rebuild their homes. And lastly on March 11^th, North Pacific coast of Japan 2011, and earth quake hit, with the magnitude of 9.0. It traveled 800 km per hour, with waves at the height of 10m, flowing over the east coast of Japan. More than 18,000 people were killed, and around 425,000 people were relocated to shelters, because of their destroyed homes. The earthquake also caused a nuclear emergency, in Fukushima Daiichi were the nuclear power plant began leaking radioactive steam. These are why we need warning systems because tsunamis can destroy countries, and kill lives.     

Lastly, what are the warning systems? And how do they protect us? Tsunamis are danger to humans, animals, cities, countries etc. They can do so much damage and cause many deaths. So we want to find a way were humans know and can be warned when a tsunami is coming, to have a chance to get away, and be safe. The West Coast/ Alaska Tsunami Warning Center (WC/ATWC) are responsible for the warning systems, for California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska. They also have the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) that is then responsible to warn other countries such as Hawaii and the U.S, countries within the Pacific basin. They both work together to warn countries if a tsunami is coming. But how do these warning systems work? So there are two types of sources, a distance source and a local source. A local source is when there is an earthquake and you feel violent shaking for around a few minutes you should head for higher ground. Because when there is an earthquake there will usually be a tsunami following afterward. But you should only do this when there is an earthquake near the water, because say if there was an earthquake right in the middle if Asia, it would not really affect the water. But then if there was an earthquake, near the bottom of Asia then that would maybe cause a tsunami. Especially when the earthquake will have a high magnitude, for example 9.0, which actually was the magnitude of the earthquake in 2004, Ocean Basin tsunami. Now for the distance source, there is a big tectonic plate, and all of its edges are the perimeter around the Pacific Ocean, we even have a nick name for it, The Ring of Fire! This plate causes many earthquakes, some that can have the magnitude of 7.0 and greater. Both of the tsunami warning centers use these certain buoys to help them with their tsunami warnings. Six of these buoys are put around the epicenter of the North Pacific to help scientist detect any signs of a tsunami. Depending on the water and how it might move across the Pacific and passing the buoy, the scientists can tell if a tsunami is approaching. One of the inventions that they also have is a warning toolbox buoys just to help avoid any false alarms, and provide backup if there are any outages. Once the scientists have found out that a tsunami is approaching, they will activate the Emergency Alert System. They will inform broadcasters, tv, radio, homes, businesses, schools, health care facilities etc. What is also good is that when there is a big earthquake when it causes a tsunami, it can take around 10 hours for it to get there, so you would have more time to prepare. But it depends because that I not always the case, after the earthquake in Japan 2011, the tsunami hit shortly after around 20 minutes later. You must always be prepared for a tsunami so some of the things you should do and consider, always have a disaster plan and a escape route, to get to higher ground. Always have a first aid kit for your home and car (This is also good for other natural disasters). And you should know how to turn off electricity, gas, and water.  So these are the warning systems, and how they work.  

In conclusion, tsunamis are very dangerous and we always need to be alert for when they will happen. And we have warning systems to protect humans, to help us be prepared for when a tsunami might be coming. Today I think we have pretty good warning system, but scientists are always trying to come up with new ideas to help and protect us more.

(Some tips on how to protect you, and be ready for a tsunami)

-Safety tips

-When you are on the beach in coastal areas, always be alert for tsunami warnings

-Have always an evacuation route that leads you to a higher ground

-Know the warning signs, the rumble of an earthquake, or the waters being pulled in

-Do not stay near the shore, to watch a tsunami

-Do not return to an affected or destroyed place, until authorities say it’s safe, because a tsunami is a series of waves

-Plan for a tsunami

-Always have a disaster plan

-Know that you are at risk for danger

-have a supplies kit, for home and car

-First aid kit, canned food and opener, bottled water, battery operated radio, flashlight, protective clothing, and instructions on how to turn off electricity, gas, water

-During Tsunami

-Follow instructions by local authorities

-Evacuate immediately

-Get to higher ground as fast as you can

-After tsunami

-Help injured or trapped people

-stay out of buildings if water remains around it

-Waters can cause buildings to sink, or floors to crack, and walls to collapse

-check for gas leaks

-open windows and doors to help dry things out

-look for fire hazards 

Bibliograhy

"How Do Tsunami Work?" How Do Tsunami Work? Web. 02 June 2012. <http://beachsafe.org.au/tsunami/ema/pages/03_workings.html>.

"The 10 Most Destructive Tsunamis in History - Australian Geographic." The 10 Most Destructive Tsunamis in History - Australian Geographic. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/the-10-biggest-tsunamis-in-history.htm>.

"History's Biggest Tsunamis." LiveScience.com. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.livescience.com/13176-history-biggest-tsunamis-earthquakes.html>.

"Tsunami Safety Tips." National Geographic. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/natural-disasters/tsunami-safety-tips/>.

"Tsunami Safety Tips." Tsunami Safety Tips. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.nilesema.com/tsunamitips.htm>.

"Weather Wiz Kids Weather Information for Kids." Weather Wiz Kids Weather Information for Kids. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather-safety-tsunami.htm>.

"NOAA Tsunami - How Does the Tsunami Warning System Work?" NOAA Tsunami - How Does the Tsunami Warning System Work? Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.tsunami.noaa.gov/warning_system_works.html>.

"Children of Tsunami - Asians Affected by Tsunami Tell Their Own Story on Video." Children of Tsunami - Asians Affected by Tsunami Tell Their Own Story on Video. Web. 02 June 2012. <http://www.childrenoftsunami.info/tsunami/what.htm>.